He spit out the toothpaste that foamed around his tongue and rinsed his mouth. He splashed some water on his face and then dried off, not bothering to hang his towel back up. He tore his shirt off and threw it in the hamper. He was just about to pull his mesh shorts off when there was a light knock on his door. He almost thought he imagined the sound, but then he heard it again. He took off for the front door and held his breath while he opened it up.
“Hey,” Piper said, as she looked at him through her eyelashes.
“Hey, come in.” She hesitated for a second, making Mason’s heart plummet, but then she moved forward and stood in his entryway.
He shut the door, locked it, and then grabbed her hand, guiding her into the living room to sit on the couch. She looked nervous, but there was also a bit of excitement in her eyes. There was a slight sparkle to them that sent his pulse to sprinting pace.
“Do you want anything to drink?” Mason felt awkward. He didn’t quite know what he was going to say to her. He wanted her with him and the only way he could get her in his place was if he threatened to bring Brooke home. Once Piper showed up, he didn’t really know what he was going to do with her that didn’t require them both getting naked.
“I’m okay, thanks though.”
They just stared at each other in the middle of the living room, her sitting on the couch and him standing above her. She looked more pale than usual. She had the creamiest skin that Mason loved indulging in, but right now, it looked more ghostly white. Her foot was fidgeting and he hoped that her nervous tendencies and ghostly complexion weren’t signs of something bad to come.
Mason sat next to Piper on the couch and pulled her hands into his. “Why did you come, Piper? Why didn’t you go home with Jax?”
She shrugged her shoulders and refused to make eye contact with him, so he placed his finger under her chin and forced her to look him in the eyes.
“Why are you here?”
Water lined her eyes, but she blinked back her tears. “I don’t really know. All I know is that I didn’t want to be anywhere else tonight. Not after what happened in the bar. I wanted to be the only girl in your home tonight.” Piper sighed and then got off the couch to pace the room. “Why did you have to be such a dick tonight? Do you know what you did to me?”
“What I did to you? Oh, I’m sorry, I was under the impression you actually knew how to play pool and didn’t need some douche bag feeling you up the whole night.”
“That’s my boyfriend! At least I’m actually attached to him, unlike you, who teeter totters between flimsy whores and slutty ex-girlfriends.” Piper stuck her head up in defiance and her hair fell around her shoulders, making her look even more beautiful than usual, but then what she said registered in his head.
He shot off the couch as well and went toward her. “I haven’t been with anyone since you, so don’t shoot off shit that you don’t know.”
“You’re telling me you have not been with Brooke at all?”
“No, not since we first fucked.”
“Eloquent,” Piper said with a huff. “But you have fucked her.”
“What kind of question is that? Of course I have, she was engaged to me. Do I really look like someone who would wait until marriage?”
“I mean, since you met me.”
Mason went still for a second. He replayed images of him screwing Brooke when she came to his place to surprise him. Piper and he were barely speaking then, but when he was screwing Brooke, he thought of Piper the whole time.
“I knew it!” Piper shouted.
“What the fuck!” Mason shot back. “Why the hell are you mad at me when you have been fucking dickweed for…how long now?”
Shock registered across Piper’s face and then anger replaced it. “Like I said, he’s my boyfriend.”
“Fucking say that again and I’m going to lose it on you,” Mason gritted out. “What, am I supposed to be celibate until you decide that you’re going to be a whore for the night and cheat on your boyfriend?” The minute the words left his mouth, he knew he was wrong.
Piper’s hand met Mason’s face in a huge slap. “You fuckhead! How dare you call me that?” Tears welled up in her eyes. Mason tried to quickly recover by pulling her into his arms. She fought him, punching his chest and trying to tear herself away, but he wouldn’t allow it.
“I’m sorry,” he tried to say, but she wouldn’t calm down enough to hear him. So, instead of talking, he grabbed her around the waist, threw her over his shoulder, and walked her down the hallway toward his bedroom.
“Let go of me!”
“Shut the hell up, woman. God, the neighbors are going to think I’m abusing you.”
“Let. Me. Go!!”
Mason flung her on his bed and then shut his bedroom door, making sure to lock it.
Piper sat up and looked around the room, taking in her surroundings. She finally realized she was in his bedroom and put her hands on her hips.
“You really think I’m going to have sex with you, after what you said about me? You’re fucking insane, you know that?”
“Just shut the hell up for one damn second.” Mason pinched the bridge of his nose. “God, I just wanted you to relax for a minute while I compose myself.” Piper crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a look that said, “Well, explain.”
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything. For tonight, for sleeping with Brooke, even though we weren’t together, for blowing up on you and making things difficult for you with Jax, even though I hate him. But you have to understand, you’re all I think about. I can’t get you out of my head and I don’t want to. I won’t even try. You have ingrained yourself in my body and my soul and all I want is you. When I see that you’re with someone else or pushing me away, it makes me beyond angry and I lash out. It’s not the most mature way of handling things, but that’s how I work.”
He took a step closer and placed his hand on her face. “I want to be with you, Piper, more than anything and all I want is for you to want me too.”
She shook her head at his words, deflating his ego instantly. He was mostly a very confident man, but lately, he’d been striking out in the love department and it was slowly eating away at him.
“What am I supposed to say to that, Mason?”
“That you feel something for me.” Mason held his breath as he waited for Piper’s response. He watched as she chewed on her bottom lip and searched his eyes…for what, he had no clue, but he tried to give her a look of sincerity...and maybe a little bit of desperation.
Silently, he pleaded to whoever wanted to listen to him for Piper to give him a chance, any little piece of her, he would welcome. He didn’t know how much more of this roller coaster behavior he could take with her. He felt sick most of the time around her because all he wanted to do was claim her as his, but he couldn’t. It twisted his stomach in knots making him extremely uncomfortable most of the time. She occupied his thoughts and had driven him to a new level of insanity.
“I do feel something for you, Mason.” Mason felt his body turn into liquid with her confession. “I just don’t know what to do about it. I can’t stop thinking about you either and it’s turning my stomach inside out. I shouldn’t have feelings for you; I shouldn’t be thinking about you and I sure as hell shouldn’t be getting insanely jealous when you touch another woman, but I don’t know what to do. There is some kind of electric energy between us that I crave when you’re not around; I crave your embrace and your touch, but I’m with someone else. How am I supposed to deal with that?”
Mason pulled her into his arms and buried his head in her soft silky hair. His heart was soaring at her statement and he didn’t even care that she mentioned the lucky shit, Jax. All he cared about was the fact that Piper had feelings for him.
He kissed her temple and whispered in her ear. “Leave him, baby. Be with me. I need you more. I can’t even describe to you how you’ve changed my life. I didn’t think a sassy redhead was going to make me feel alive again. Af
ter Brooke left me, I didn’t think I would ever feel again; I was completely numb, but then I met you and slowly, but surely, feeling started to tingle back into my body. You are an addiction, baby…my addiction and there is no way I want to kick the habit. You’re it. Be with me, be brave and be with me.”
Piper pulled away and looked up at him. Her eyes were darker than usual and tears threatened to spill over her red-rimmed lids. He kissed her eyes gently, trying to be as gentle as possible, since most of the time he was anything but gentle. He was rough, overbearing, demanding and a domineering alpha male, but that was who he was; he couldn’t help it. His behavior caused many fights between the two of them, but he reveled in their fights because he felt they brought them closer, in a weird way.
“I think I need you too, Mason.”
Mason rested his forehead on hers and exhaled a breath he had no clue he was holding in.
“Jesus, I can’t tell you how amazing that makes me feel.”
“I don’t know what to do now.”
Mason brought her to his bed, pulled down the covers and invited her in. She hesitated and was about to protest when he interrupted her.
“I just want to hold you tonight and talk.”
“Promise?”
“Promise, baby,” he said gently.
She smiled at him, pulled her shoes off and then looked around his room. “Can I borrow a shirt? I kind of smell like a bar right now.”
Mason chuckled at the way she crinkled her nose. “You smell amazing, but by all means, help yourself to one of my shirts. I would be so lucky to have you wear one.”
Mason gave her a shirt to wear and made himself comfortable in bed while she changed. He couldn’t believe his luck right now. He finally had Piper heading in the direction he wanted her to. She was giving him a chance. Now he just needed to help her find a way to break things off with Jax. Jax wouldn’t be happy, but the douche could go fuck himself for all Mason cared. Mason could give two shits about Jax and his feelings, especially after the hell of a pre-season he put Mason and his teammates through. He deserved to be dumped for being such a dickhead.
Piper opened the door to his bathroom and stepped out in one of his dress shirts. She rolled the sleeves up to her elbows and the hem landed just above her knees, giving him a good peek at her long, luscious legs. She must have fluffed her hair or messed it around because it was a little wild looking, which framed her face perfectly. Mason felt his mouth water and he had to remind himself that he was just going to hold her tonight, no frisky business.
“Don’t look at me like that,” she said with a slight grin peeking out of the corner of her mouth.
“Sorry, but it’s pretty much impossible when you look that good. Now come here.”
Mason held the covers back for her and once she slipped in, he pulled her against his chest, burying his head in the expanse of red curls that covered his pillow. Her hair smelled like vanilla and coconut mixed together, putting his senses on high alert. He kept reminding his little man to keep things under control. Godzilla didn’t need to scare her away with his excitement.
“This is where you belong Piper, in my place, in my bed, in my arms.”
She snuggled against him, wiggling her bottom more into place, which sent a jolt through his crotch. Mason cleared his throat.
“Baby, if you could refrain from squirming around, that would be great. My body can’t be held responsible for any actions that might take place if you continue to move around like that.”
She giggled, sending another jolt of lust to his balls from the cute little sound that came out of her mouth. Jesus, she was going to be the death of him.
“I don’t want to think about tomorrow, or Jax, or what I’m going to do. I just want to be with you for tonight and then we’ll figure out what to do from there.”
“Sounds perfect to me. We’ll get through this together, baby. You and me, that’s all we need.”
He pulled her even closer and snuggled into her backside. He felt like he couldn’t get close enough and he knew it was because of the barrier of clothes between them, but he was a man of his word and he would keep his promise of no frisky business, even though it was tearing him up inside. He wanted to feel her skin on his, feel her heat, but he would settle for what he had right now. After they settled everything between them and she was his, he would make sure there were no clothes between them, ever. He wanted to be as close to her as he could get, for the rest of his life. This was it for him. He wanted no one else. Piper owned him.
***
Piper felt the breeze kiss her skin as strong arms wrapped around her. She noted that it was early in the morning because the sun was just peeking through the curtains. The urge to flee, escape and forget her decision to stay with Mason ran through her mind, but she tamped it down. She was here for a reason; she was here because of the strong pull that ran between her and Mason. She wanted to know what it was all about and why she felt the need to be near him, with him.
Once she heard Mason’s breathing even out last night, she knew he was sleeping and she was able to actually think about her decision. While he was still awake, she was on edge, just waiting for him to make a move. The only move he made on her last night was running his hand across her stomach which, to her disgust, turned her on. She wished she didn’t have such strong feelings for Mason, but she couldn’t help it.
Once he fell asleep, she thought about the predicament her raging hormones and heart put her in. She couldn’t just go and break up with Jax, not if things were going to be rocky with Mason. Whenever she was around Mason, they either fought or fucked; that was not much of a relationship. With Jax, he treated her with respect, he loved her, cherished her; he was her safe haven and it was hard to step away from the loving relationship that they’d created together.
She thought about the first time she met Jax at the 7-Eleven, getting Slurpees. He was so adorable with his ball cap and perfectly worn jeans. Little did she know at the time that she was going to fall for the man with the southern drawl and impeccable taste in Slurpee concoctions.
She pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a long sigh. She couldn’t step away from both men, it was practically impossible. She knew she needed to choose, but she needed more time. She needed to figure out which man she was meant to be with because, at the moment, it seemed like both.
She giggled to herself, thinking about proposing a possible threesome to both men; that way everyone would win. Knowing Mason’s hatred for Jax and Jax being such a gentleman, a threesome would never work. Not to mention, Mason was extremely alpha male and would most likely not be in the business of sharing his woman. Still, the thought made her laugh, thinking of their faces if she did make such an absurd proposal.
Mason squeezed her closer. “What’s so funny?” he asked in a very deep and husky voice. Oh God, Mason’s morning voice was beyond sexy, he sounded at peace and…all male.
“Nothing,” she said, as she turned in his arms and looked him in the eyes. His lids were heavy from just waking up, but she got a great peek at his dark eyes. It seemed that in the morning, they were darker than normal. It was as if his eyes were almost black.
“You have beautiful eyes,” Piper said, while stroking his cheek, relishing in the overgrown stubble on his face. She loved his stubble, even though it left beard burn all over her body. She didn’t care because his stubble made him drop-dead gorgeous to look at. He was tall, dark, and handsome and not to mention…thick.
He gave her a lazy smile. “I have beautiful eyes? Look in the mirror sweetheart. You might be surprised to see what beautiful eyes actually are.”
“Smooth Dashel, really smooth.”
He kissed her nose. “I like you like this, with me, in bed, joking. I hate it when we fight.”
“Me too,” Piper said softly.
Mason peeked over Piper’s shoulder and grimaced. “I have to get up and get ready for the game today. I would rather stay here in bed with you, but I highly doubt the
Stallions’ organization would take kindly to me missing the first pre-season game.”
“That’s alright. I should get back to my place anyway. We’ll have a packed bar tonight, thanks to you and the boys.”
Mason leaned over her body and brought his mouth to hers. His lips were surprisingly soft for such a rustic kind of man. He had callouses on his hands from the many practices, days in the weight room and days on the field, but his lips were a stark contrast to his hands. He was gentle at first, but once she reciprocated his kiss, he became more urgent, as if he left her now she would disappear. Her stomach fluttered at his light touch and the way his tongue did a light exploration of her mouth. She felt a dull ache starting to take form between her legs, causing her to moan into his mouth.
Mason pulled away instantly and looked her in the eyes. “You can’t do that. You can’t moan while I’m kissing you when I made a promise to you.”
“Well then, don’t go kissing me like that,” she smiled at him.
“What are you going to do?” Mason grew serious and Piper realized the question he asked was not about the kissing. It was, in fact, a conversation she didn’t want to have.
“What do you mean?” she asked, trying to prolong the inevitable.
“You know what I mean. What’s next for us?”
And there it was, the question she didn’t want to answer because she had no clue. The look in his eyes when he asked the question was pleading. He had the whole puppy dog look going for him and it was killing her.
She swallowed hard and felt tears threaten to spill over onto her cheeks. Mason noticed because he instantly scooped her up and set her on his lap, while he leaned against his headboard. He stroked her arm up and down and kissed her temple. The sweet and kind gesture only made her decision that much harder, causing the tears to fall.